Sunday, May 31, 2015

Some Facts about the 12 Steps of A.A., the Supposed Six Steps, and “A First Century Christian Fellowship” (Later Also Known As “The Oxford Group”)



Some Facts about the 12 Steps of A.A., the Supposed Six Steps, and “A First Century Christian Fellowship” (Later Also Known As “The Oxford Group”) 

By Ken B. (based, in part, on research by Dick B.)
© 2015 Anonymous. All rights reserved
 

A.A. cofounders Bill W. and Dr. Bob met each other for the first time at the Seiberling Gate Lodge in Akron on Mother's Day, May 12, 1935. Dr. Bob stated in his last major talk given in Detroit in December 1948: 

When we [A.A. cofounders Bill W. and Dr. Bob] started in on Bill D. [“Alcoholic Anonymous Number Three,” Akron attorney Bill D.], we had no Twelve Steps . . . we had no Traditions. But we were convinced that the answer to our problems was in the Good Book.[1] 

And about those early days of A.A. and the origins of the Twelve Steps, Dr. Bob also stated in his last major talk: 

We [A.A. cofounders Bill W. and Dr. Bob] already had the basic ideas [of the Twelve Steps], though not in terse and tangible form. We got them, as I said, as a result of our study of the Good Book.”[2] 

In contrast to Dr. Bob’s statements about the Twelve Steps quoted above, Bill W. made a number of statements through the years claiming that he had derived the Twelve Steps from an earlier set of “six steps” which made up what he called “the word-of-mouth program.”[3] In fact: (1) some statements mention only five items, not six; (2) the wording of the items varied from one statement to the next—particularly when it came to God’s role in the “program;” (3) the source(s) of the five or six items varied from one statement to the next; and (4) the five or six items were not consistently called “steps.” They were also called “principles,” “practices,” and “elements.”[4] 

As Bill W.’s wife Lois—who kept a diary—wrote on page 111 of her memoir, Lois Remembers, Bill did not begin writing the first two chapters of Alcoholics Anonymous (“the Big Book”) until around May 1938. The March 1, 2014, version of “A Narrative Timeline of AA History” indicates that Bill didn't write the Twelve Steps found in chapter five of the Big Book (“How It Works”) until early December 1938. [http://mcaf.ee/mibwp; accessed 5/31/2015]. 

There has also been a myth floating around the rooms of A.A. that the (supposed) “six steps” of early A.A. came from “six steps” in “A First Century Christian Fellowship” (which was later also known as “the Oxford Group”).[5] In fact, there were no “six Steps” in the Oxford Group. As the A.A. General Service Conference-approved book ‘PASS IT ON’ states: “There is no evidence that the Oxford Group had such a specific program.”[6] As to the connection between “A First Century Christian Fellowship” (also known as “the Oxford Group”) and Alcoholics Anonymous (and its Twelve Steps), The Oxford Group and Alcoholics Anonymous: A Design for Living That Works! by Dick B. remains the definitive work on that topic.[7] 

One confirmation of Dr. Bob’s emphasis on the Bible—which he often referred to as “the Good Book”—both as the source for the answers to the problems of the early A.A. pioneers (such as alcoholism!), and for the basic ideas of the Twelve Steps, may be seen in Frank Amos’s seven-point summary of the original Akron A.A. program as of February 1938—about 14 months prior to the publication of Alcoholics Anonymous in April 1939. The Amos summary, included in a report that was sent to John D. Rockefeller, Jr., is quoted in the A.A. General Service Conference-approved book DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers: 

1.      An alcoholic must realize that he is an alcoholic, incurable from a medical viewpoint, and that he must never drink anything with alcohol in it.  

2.      He must surrender himself absolutely to God, realizing that in himself there is no hope.  

3.      Not only must he want to stop drinking permanently, he must remove from his life other sins such as hatred, adultery, and others which frequently accompany alcoholism. Unless he will do this absolutely, Smith and his associates refuse to work with him. 

4.      He must have devotions every morning–a “quiet time” of prayer and some reading from the Bible and other religious literature. Unless this is faithfully followed, there is grave danger of backsliding.  

5.      He must be willing to help other alcoholics get straightened out. This throws up a protective barrier and strengthens his own willpower and convictions.  

6.      It is important, but not vital, that he meet frequently with other reformed alcoholics and form both a social and a religious comradeship.  

7.      Important, but not vital, that he attend some religious service at least once weekly.[8] 

Note the reference to “God” in item number two—not to a “higher power”; not to “a power greater than ourselves;” and not to “God as we understood Him.” And note the reference to the reading of the Bible in item number four. 

As DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers points out about A.A. cofounder Dr. Bob’s emphasis on the Bible in the original Akron A.A. program:  

“([A.A. cofounder] Dr. Bob was always positive about his faith, Clarence [S., founder of A.A.'s third group in the world in Cleveland] said. If someone asked him a question about the program, his usual response was: ‘What does it say in the Good Book?'”[9] 

A.A. claimed for its early years a 75% success rate: 

Of alcoholics who came to A.A. and really tried, 50% got sober at once and remained that way; 25% sobered up after some relapses, and among the remainder, those who stayed on with A.A. showed improvement.[10] 

If you would like to see that success rate, and even the documented 93% success rate among people in early Cleveland A.A. who never took a drink again(!), my dad (Dick B.) and I suggest you “stick with the winners!” Stick with people such as A.A. cofounder Dr. Bob, whom Bill W. called “the prince of all twelfth-steppers” because of the 5,000 alcoholics he helped recover between 1940 and 1950 (in the company of Sister Ignatia);[11] and with Clarence S., who founded A.A.’s third group in the world in Cleveland on May 11, 1939. 

Gloria Deo


[1] “The Co-Founders of Alcoholics Anonymous: Biographical Sketches: Their Last Major Talks” (Item # P-53), 13: http://mcaf.ee/62m4a.
[2] “The Co-Founders of Alcoholics Anonymous,” 14.
[3] See, for example: Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, 160-61.
[4] For the most thorough review of the various discussions by Bill W., by Lois W., and in a personal story in the Big Book, see: Dick B. and Ken B., “‘The Word-of-Mouth Program’/‘Six Steps’ of Bill W.”: http://mcaf.ee/bhxzq; accessed 5/31/2015.
[5] According to Garth Lean, author of the definitive biography of Lutheran minister Dr. Frank N. D. Buchman: “In the autumn of 1922, . . . Buchman and a few friends formed what they called ‘A First Century Christian Fellowship.’ ‘It is,’ declared Buchman in a note to a supporter, ‘a voice of protest against the organized committeeised and lifeless Christian work’ and ‘an attempt to get back to the beliefs and methods of the Apostles.’” [Source: Garth Lean, Frank Buchman: a Life (London: Constable, 1985), 97. This book was released in the U.S. with the title: On the Tail of a Comet]. It wasn't until September of 1928 that the press in South Africa—not the group's founder Dr. Buchman or anyone else in the group itself—applied the label “the Oxford Group” to anyone in the group. Lean writes: “The visit [to South Africa in the summer of 1928 of the group of students from Oxford University] had one unexpected side-effect. Almost from the outset, the newspapers - seeking for a simple catch-phrase to describe them - labelled them 'the Oxford Group'.* The story is told that a sleeping-car attendant, seeking for a name to put on their compartment, used the phrase for the group of young men who only had Oxford in common - and that the press meeting them picked it up. The name stuck because it so exactly described the party. Francis Goulding - a St John's graduate, by then working full-time with Buchman - remembers him receiving the news that this name was being generally used: 'He wasn't enthusiastic, but he said, ‘If it's got to be called something, that's as good as anything.’” [Source: Lean, Frank Buchman: A Life, 138].
‘PASS IT ON’ states: “In the late 1930’s, Dr. Bob, co-founder of A.A., and the other Akron, Ohio, AAs continued to refer to it [the group] in that way [i.e., as “A First Century Christian Fellowship”]. See 'PASS IT ON,' 130.
When Harvey Firestone, Sr., invited Dr. Buchman—out of appreciation for the help Rev. Sam Shoemaker (a ‘chief lieutenant’ of the Oxford Group in America) had provided to Firestone's son Russell in helping Russell overcome alcoholism in 1931—to do a series of meetings in Akron, Ohio, in January 1933, the name “A First Century Christian Fellowship” was on the invitations that were circulated (which my dad, Dick B., personally saw during his research in Akron in the 1990s). See, for example: Dick B., The Akron Genesis of Alcoholics Anonymous, 17-18: http://www.dickb.com/Akron.shtml.
[6] PASS IT ON,’ 197. See also the footnote on page 206 of ‘PASS IT ON.’
[7] Dick B., The Oxford Group and Alcoholics Anonymous: A Design for Living That Works: http://mcaf.ee/q41d3.
[8] DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 131.
[9] DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, 144.
[10] From “Foreword to Second Edition” in Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th ed., xx.
[11] The Co-Founders of Alcoholics Anonymous, 34.

A.A.’s Proposed Solution for Overcoming the Problem of Alcoholism

A.A.’s Proposed Solution for Overcoming the Problem of Alcoholism 

By Ken B.
© 2015 Anonymous. All rights reserved 

If you are talking with someone who has a desire to stop drinking (or using!), are you sharing with them A.A.’s proposed solution for overcoming the problem of alcoholism? 

A.A.'s proposed solution for overcoming the problem of alcoholism is found in chapter two of Alcoholics Anonymous (“the Big Book”). The chapter is titled: “There Is a Solution.” 

·         Page 17--the first page in chapter two--states: “The tremendous fact for every one of us is that we have discovered a common solution.” [And note the use of the phrase “the tremendous fact” on page 17.]

·         Page 18 states: “. . . [T]he ex-problem drinker who has found this solution, . . . can generally win the entire confidence of another alcoholic in a few hours.”

·         Page 25 states: “There is a solution.” [And note that that entire sentence is put in italics print for emphasis!].

·         Page 25 then states A.A.'s proposed solution for overcoming the problem of alcohol in the three sentences of the following paragraph: “The great fact is just this, and nothing less: That we have had deep and effective spiritual experiences(*) which have revolutionized our whole attitude toward life, toward our fellows and toward God's universe. The central fact of our lives today is the absolute certainty that our Creator has entered into our hearts and lives in a way which is indeed miraculous. He [i.e., “our Creator”] has commenced to accomplish those things for us which we could never do by ourselves.” [And note the use of phrases “the great fact” and “the central fact” in that paragraph.]

·         Page 25 then continues: “If you are as seriously alcoholic as we were, we believe there is no middle-of-the-road solution. We were in a position where life was becoming impossible, and if we had passed into the region from which there is no return through human aid, we had but two alternatives: One was to go on to the bitter end, blotting out the consciousness of our intolerable situation as best we could; and the other, to accept spiritual help.” [Note the following phrases in the preceding two sentences: “no return through human aid”; “two alternatives”; and “accept spiritual help.”]  

Finally, observe the second occurrence of the phrase “the Great Fact” in the Big Book, found on page 164 (the last numbered page in the book before the “Personal Stories” section): “See to it that your relationship with Him is right, and great events will come to pass for you and countless others. This is the Great Fact for us.” 

As can be seen from page 25 in the Big Book, A.A.’s proposed solution for overcoming the problem of alcoholism is: “that our Creator has entered into our hearts and lives in a way which is indeed miraculous. He has commenced to accomplish those things for us which we could never do by ourselves.” And that solution is alluded to throughout the Big Book. For example: 

·         In chapter one, “Bill’s Story”: 

o   “Simply, but smilingly, he [A.A. cofounder Bill W.’s Burr and Burton Seminary schoolmate Ebby T.] said, ‘I've got religion.’” [Page 9. This language was used in “A First Century Christian Fellowship,” later also known as “the Oxford Group,” to mean that Ebby had made his “personal surrender.” That personal surrender involved accepting Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior; and Ebby had made his surrender on November 1, 1934, at Calvary Mission run by Rev. Sam Shoemaker’s Calvary Episcopal Church in New York. See Mel B., Ebby: The Man Who Sponsored Bill W., 5th ed. (Center City, Minn.: Hazelden, 1997), 65.]

o   “But my friend [i.e., A.A. cofounder Bill W.’s Burr and Burton Seminary schoolmate Ebby T.] sat before me, and he made the point-blank declaration that God had done for him what he could not do for himself.” [Page 11]. 

·         In chapter two, “There Is a Solution”: “Each individual, in the personal stories, describes in his own language and from his own point of view the way he established his relationship with God.” [Page 29. In the prepublication version of Alcoholics Anonymous (also known as the mimeograph edition, the “Multilith Edition,” and the “Original Manuscript”), the wording was “. . . the way he found or rediscovered God.”:  http://mcaf.ee/803le; accessed 5/31/2015.] 

·         In chapter five, “How It Works”: 

o   “Remember that we deal with alcohol—cunning, baffling, powerful! Without help it is too much for us. But there is One who has all power--that One is God. May you find Him now!” [Pages 58-59]

o   “Our description of the alcoholic, the chapter to the agnostic, and our personal adventures before and after make clear three pertinent ideas: (a) That we were alcoholic and could not manage our own lives. (b) That probably no human power could have relieved our alcoholism. (c) That God could and would if He were sought.” [Page 60]. 

And there are many other direct and indirect statements scattered throughout the basic text of Alcoholics Anonymous (i.e., the entire Big Book) which make clear that finding or rediscovering God, the Creator of the heavens and the earth, is at the heart of A.A.’s proposed solution for overcoming the problem of alcoholism. For example, there are 135 occurrences of the word “God” on pages 1-164 of the current (fourth) edition of Alcoholics, 133 of which are either specifically referring to the Creator of the heavens and the earth, or can be understood to include Him as one of the possible meanings of that word. (Please see this list of occurrences:  http://mcaf.ee/onzqa.) The word “Creator” occurs 12 times on those same 164 pages. (Please see this of occurrences: http://mcaf.ee/cgknx.) And there are 81 occurrences of capitalized pronouns referring to God on those same 164 pages. (Please see this list of occurrences: http://mcaf.ee/6ps7o.) 

And then we have two vitally-important statements by A.A.’s cofounders, Bill W. and Dr. Bob: 

[Bill W. said to the wife of “Alcoholic Anonymous Number Three,” Akron attorney Bill D., in the second or third week of July 1935]: “. . . ‘Henrietta, the Lord has been so wonderful to me, curing me of this terrible disease, that I just want to keep talking about it and telling people.’” [Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th ed., 191]. 

[Dr. Bob stated in his personal story in the Big Book]: “Your Heavenly Father will never let you down!” [Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th ed., 181]. 

Again, if you are talking with someone who has a desire to stop drinking (or using!), are you sharing with them A.A.’s proposed solution for overcoming the problem of alcoholism? 

And remember: “. . . [O]ur literature has preserved the integrity of the A.A. message, . . .” [“Foreword to Fourth Edition” in ”Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th ed., xxiv] 

Gloria Deo

Thursday, May 14, 2015

A Huge Opportunity to Serve God, Help Others, and Improve Your Life


A Huge Opportunity to Serve God, Help Others, and Improve Your Life

 

By Dick B.

© Anonymous 2015. All rights reserved

 

·         I will be 90 years old tomorrow. (I was born May 15, 1925.)

·         I have more than 29 years of continuous sobriety in A.A. (I got sober April 21, 1986.)

·         I have dozens of clean, sober, accomplished, service-oriented, new friends in recovery.

·         I know thousands of Christians in recovery.

·         I encourage those who believe or seek to believe that they—and others suffering from alcoholism and addiction—can depend upon Almighty God for their recovery.

·         I well remember the many people who came from all over the United States and Canada to the huge conference my son Ken and I hosted at Mariners Church Community Center in May 2009 (with tremendous help from Rev. Jim Gaffney and others) for Christians concerned about recovery. And at that conference, Ken and I were able to describe and report the role that God, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Bible play and can play in recovery from alcoholism and addiction.

·         I know many Christian leaders and workers in the recovery arena who have become “Participants” in the International Christian Recovery Coalition Ken and I founded in July 2009 (www.ChristianRecoveryCoalition.com).

·         I know many people who do not want to support any takeover of Alcoholics Anonymous by the atheists and agnostics who are trying to exclude God from recovery or re-write a program that will blot out the need for “Divine aid,” and obscure the facts about what God can do for those still suffering (http://aaagnostica.org/2014/12/11/aa-without-the-god).

·         I know many who have not read or heard what Dr. Bob wrote in his Big Book story about his feeling sorry for atheists and agnostics, followed by his asserting in the final sentence of his personal story: “Your Heavenly Father will never let you down!”

·         I continue to reach out to all those who are friendly to each other.

·         I continue to reach out to those who believe they can help others by love and service.

·         I continue to reach out to those who grasp the fact that hatred of other beliefs or unbelief is poisonous.

·         I continue to seek out and encourage those who are friendly to A.A. fellowships.

·         I continue to encourage groups, meetings, and participants who are friendly to any who seek recovery from alcoholism and addiction, and want to stop the destroyers.

·         I continue to seek out and encourage people who are friendly to those in the fields of religion, science, education, charity, medicine, and psychology—fields composed of those who seek to help others and become informed themselves.

·         I continue to appreciate the dozens and dozens of sponsees who have asked and allowed me through the years to help them.

 

There has been growing a loud voice from opponents and destroyers of fellowship in Alcoholics Anonymous. Most of you know how much you have enjoyed and profited from all the activities, achievements, and rewards of A.A. Most believe that God can and will and does do for suffering alcoholics and addicts what they could not do for themselves.

 

·         Please consider that thousands have participated in the International Christian Recovery Coalition and its conferences. We believe the strong testimonial approach of the original AAs is the most persuasive and effective method of standing tall for God’s help. It allows the many who have been rebuked for mentioning God, His Son Jesus Christ, and the Bible to tell believers, other recovery participants, and others who strongly seek to help others, to stand on the ideas that A.A. will perish, if we forget where we came from; and that,  if we do not have before us the truth that God has the (best) solution for overcoming the problem of alcoholism, do not carry that message to those who still suffer, the (original, highly-successful) A.A. program will be lost.

 

·         Please communicate with us in any way you choose; and let us know your suggestions, questions, and views as to how to keep God, His Son Jesus Christ and the Bible in the same, clear, successful role that prompted millions to choose the “old-school” A.A. program for their complete healing. 

 

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (Prov 3:5-6 KJV)

 

 

Gloria Deo

Wednesday, May 06, 2015

How to Hold "Old-School" Akron-Style A.A. Meetings


 

Alcoholics Anonymous History

Reflections on How to Hold “Old-School,”

Akron-Style A.A. Meetings

 

Dick B.

© 2013 Anonymous. All rights reserved

 

 

Forming the Group

 

We regularly receive phone calls and emails from those who believe in God, want His help in recovery, and want to start a group in a 12-Step Fellowship or among church brethren that is patterned on the format and successes of the early Akron A.A. Christian Fellowship.

 

Our most recent published suggestions on how to conduct “old-school,” Akron-style A.A. meetings are embodied in our two titles:

 

1.      Dick B. and Ken B., Stick with the Winners! How to Conduct More Effective 12-Step Recovery Meetings Using Conference-Approved Literature (Kihei, HI: Paradise Research Publications, Inc., 2012):  http://mcaf.ee/ok81l; and

 

2.      Dick B. and Ken B., Pioneer Stories in Alcoholics Anonymous (Kihei, HI: Paradise Research Publications, Inc., 2012):  http://mcaf.ee/rh0gw.

 

Those forming a should, ordinarily, like the Akron pioneers, believe in God, establish their relationship with Him through His Son Jesus Christ, and look to both, as well as to the Bible, for answers to their problems. Or, they should be persons who want that type of help.

 

The qualifications for “membership” should thus focus on a newcomer who wishes to end the use of alcohol and addictive drugs in his life forever; will do whatever it takes to accomplish just that; and will surrender to God for relief from his problems—recognizing that neither he nor any human power has been able to cure him of his illness.

 

The group should begin its organizational efforts with a prayer to their Heavenly Father for His power, love, guidance, and suggestions for conducting the group. Which means, of course, looking to a loving God as He may express Himself in a group conscience. This is the beginning of reaching democratically an informed group conscience on group content.

 

Agenda items should include keeping a written record of all group decisions; selecting a Secretary; adopting a name; selecting the time and place for meetings; developing a format for the meeting; and deciding on what literature shall be used and where it shall be placed for view and use.

 

Conducting a Meeting

 

·         “Old-school” Akron A.A. opened its meetings with a prayer by the leader, reading from Scripture, and then having a selected individual give a brief “lead” (talk).

 

·         The content of a talk will be most helpful if it covers very briefly the speaker’s problem that brought him to the fellowship, what he learned about the original Akron A.A. program, what he did that fitted that mold, what his “vital religious experience” (if any) or “turning point” was; how he surrendered to God, learned from the Bible what obedience to God’s will included, practiced daily via Bible study, prayer, Quiet Time, and the reading of religious literature; what he has done to help others get well; and what he still needs and wants to hear.

 

If the speaker wishes to discuss the Big Book or Twelve Steps, his remarks will be the most helpful if focused on the language of the Big Book and of a Step, what he did, where he turned to God for help, how the Bible and prayer helped him, and what he still needs and wants to hear.

 

Drunkalogs and war stories were simply not a part of the early meetings. And Dr. Bob specifically said they didn’t amount to much. Other old-timers had different reasons for excluding such diatribes.

 

·         There can be group prayer and a group quiet time for communicating with God.

 

·         If, based on the speaker’s presentation, there can be a group topic; and the Secretary should permit very brief questions or comments to be raised by members present.

 

·         If there are members or newcomers who have not yet made a “full surrender,” the meeting may briefly adjourn. The prospect should be escorted to a private place by two or three selected leaders. The prospect should kneel in prayer; and the leaders should pray with him.

 

·         The prayers—if they are to be like those of the pioneers-- should consist of three parts:

 

1.      The newcomer professes his belief in God—Hebrews 11:6; and he accepts Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior—Romans 10:9 and John 3:16.

 

2.      Then the newcomer asks God in the name of Jesus Christ to take alcohol and drugs out of his life forever.

 

3.      Then the newcomer petitions God in the name of Jesus Christ, with thanksgiving, and according to God’s will, to meet his particular needs as to guidance, healing, and forgiveness, as well as serving and glorifying God and serving God and others.

 

·         Attention should be called to the literature table and how to use it.

 

·         The meeting should adjourn with a group prayer.

 

Variations as to Meetings

 

Each group, after asking God for His guidance, should then be autonomous and free to decide what to include in meetings and how many meetings should be conducted in a week by the group.

 

·                     There should be a special period for orienting newcomers as to what Alcoholics Anonymous is all about, and the resources that are available—with particular emphasis on reliance on God, study of the Bible, prayer, obeying God’s will, and helping others as much and frequently as possible. See DR. BOB and the Good Oldtimers, page 131.

 

·                     There can be a Quiet Time meeting patterned on those conducted by Dr. Bob’s wife each morning where she opened with prayer, read Scripture, led the group in prayer, read from her journal, and discussed godly subjects raised. See Dick B., Anne Smith’s Journal, 1933-1939 (http://mcaf.ee/okuca).

 

·                     There can be a Big Book or a Twelve Step meeting where heavy emphasis is placed on using and reading from the Big Book and where an informed leadership as to how to take each Step. See Our A.A. Legacy to the Faith Community workbook by three Clarence Snyder Sponsee Old-timers and Their Wives (available from www.CameToBelieve.org).

 

·                     There can be a Bible study group--with particular emphasis on the three segments Dr. Bob said were considered “absolutely essential:” See The Co-Founders of Alcoholics Anonymous: Biographical Sketches: Their Last Major Talks (A.A. Literature Catalog item # P-53); and Dick B., The James Club and the Original A.A. Program’s Absolute Essentials (http://mcaf.ee/v1nh9)--in both cases dealing with the Book of James, Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount, and 1 Corinthians 13.

 

·                     There can be an A.A. history study group--utilizing the forthcoming “Bill W., Dr. Bob, and the Cure of Alcoholism: The Rest of the Story” video series by Dick B. and Ken B. for teaching. 

 

Other history topics could include:

 

·         The roots of A.A. in Vermont.

·         The Christian upbringing of Bill W. and Dr. Bob.

·         How the first three AAs got sober.

·         The original seven-point A.A. program summarized by Frank Amos.

·         The 16 practices of the Akron A.A. “Christian fellowship” members.

·         The resemblance of the early Akron A.A. “Christian fellowship” to the practices of the Apostles as recorded in the Book of Acts.

·         Where Bill W. got the ideas for the Big Book and 12 Steps before they were changed.

·         The “Broad Highway” established by the last-minute changes in the printer’s manuscript of the Big Book before it went to press.

·         The immense support (still present in A.A. General Service Conference-approved literature) for the “old-school” practices and for applying those practices in today’s Fellowship.

 

Gloria Deo

Monday, May 04, 2015

Orthodoxy looks at A.A. and Author Dick B.


The 12 Steps are the Green way to recovery.
 
Yes, I am kidding.
 
Sure, the recovery rate in AA is low... because the meetings are open and most people take years to get to a point of willingness.  AA is meant for the 'hopeless alcoholic,' not the newbie abuser with plenty of spunk and lots of ambition.  Read the histories written by Dick B. and you will see that AA has changed dramatically in that respect.
 
The 'pill' does not rebuild the relationships broken by addiction, nor does it cure the inner suffering the Steps address.
 
No pill can replace the healing of repentance and conversion.  No pill can make your amends for you.  No pill can replace the sense of God's love and mercy.
 
No pill can make you Sober.